Klaroline Drabbles
by timetravelercat
Summary: Some drabbles I wrote along the years.
1. Jealousy

**Jealousy**

Klaus has been acting weird lately. Since Stefan got here, to be more accurate, he's been grumpier than usual–if that scowl on his face wasn't already permanent than she's pretty sure it is now–and he's been spending way too much time locked inside his studio with only bottles of scotch for company… and depressive classic music in the background.

She has a pretty good idea as to why he's been acting like this; she does admit that she's been neglecting him for the past week in order to catch up with her BFF–

–which okay, she might have had the illusion that she was in love with him at some point, but Klaus doesn't know that… right?

Oh, well, he has nothing to worry about and she thought he knew that, so she let it slide, thinking it'd go away soon.

Needless to say, she was wrong. It didn't go away, it actually got worse.

Every time she got home from a day out with Stefan, Klaus left his studio, glared at them–if looks could kill she and her friend would be dead, buried and eaten by worms at this point–and left for his studio again, closing the door rather roughly behind him. At night he'd slide in their bed without a word and sleep with his back turned to her. No "Goodnight, love," no kiss, no _sex_. Caroline was getting frustrated with his petty jealousy, so much that she had considered tying him up to a chair and beating him up until he realized how much of an idiot he actually is.

But she decided that maybe that wasn't the best approach after all.

And that is how she ended up in their bed in only red lace lingerie and black heels. She would bang his brains out until he got inside that thick skull of his that he was the one she wanted to be with…

Or so she planned.

"What do you mean you're going out for drinks with Stefan?" She asked him incredulously.

Klaus was standing by their dresser looking for his wallet.

"Stefan invited me to go out and have some drinks and I said yes."

Stefan invited him for drinks? That made no sense. Like no sense _at all_. Why would Stefan invite him for drinks? And most importantly, why would Klaus choose _that_ over having sex with her?

She kept staring at him with the same incredulous look still on her face.

"I'm half naked in our bed and you are going out to have drinks with Stefan?" she asked.

Unfreakingbelivable!

He turned to look at her with apologetic eyes, "Sorry, love, but you'll have to wait."

Wait? Oh, no, mister, nah-huh.

She arched an eyebrow at him and crossed her arms in front of her chest, "I won't wait, Klaus. It's now or never."

He kept staring at her for a couple of minutes, seemingly unsure of what to do. She scoffed at his indecision, fuming now.

"Let me make this easier for you," said slowly, the anger and frustration very much present in her tone. "Go out, have fun with your _boyfriend_. But don't expect to touch me for a very long time."

Asshole.

Klaus sighed and ran his hand down his face. "Caroline-"

"Go!" She shouted, pointing at the door.

He raised and dropped his arms in frustration before leaving the room, muttering something that sounded incredibly like "women" and "this conversation isn't over."

Caroline sunk in bed with her arms crossed and a huge pout on her face.

So much for her plans…

It was past midnight when he arrived home and she was still lying in bed awake. She couldn't sleep; she could never sleep when Klaus left home after a fight. So she waited for him to join her in bed. But he never did and she heard the door to his studio open and close and him pouring himself a glass of scotch.

Caroline frowned and got up deciding to check what had put her Klaus in a mood again. Maybe he was just scared to lie next to her after that fight—

—except that they had had worst fights over the past year they've been together and he was never afraid to do that before, which made her even more curious as to what was going on in that complicated mind of his.

She slowly knocked on the door before getting inside where he was turned to the window with a huge blank canvas in front of him and a drink in his hand.

"Hey," she said hesitantly.

"Why knock if you won't wait for an answer?" He growled and finished his drink in one go.

So his mood is worse than she imagined. Great, but it's okay, she can deal with this jerk.

Pulling her cardigan over her very sexy pajamas—that Klaus _won't_ be allowed to take off of her, by the way—and walked closer to him.

"Why so grumpy? Not that you ever needed a reason to pull a grumpy cat anyway," she smirked at him when he turned around to face her rolling his eyes.

"It's none of your business."

"Um, I'm your _girlfriend_; everything you do is my business."

"Then is not everything _you_ do _my_ business too?"

"Different rules apply for men and women," she said lightly and offered him a small smile.

He scoffed, turning away from her again.

"You didn't have fun with your _boyfriend_?" She asked sarcastically.

Silence, it was all she was meant with.

"Oh, c'mom, you blew me off for a guy and it wasn't even fun? Is Stefan making you question your sexuality now?" She mocked.

"My sexuality is fine," he replied, clearly not amused.

"Are you dumping me then?" She kept mocking unfazed by the glares he was throwing in her direction. "You are! You are dumping me for Stefan."

She knew mocking him would only make things worse, but she couldn't help it, it was too much fun to mess with Klaus.

"Drop it."

She sighed. "Look, I thought about it and I know that having drinks with him must have been really important to you, considering you dumped sex with me for it and you never dump sex with me for _anything_, especially when I'm practically throwing myself at you. I bought that set of lingerie just for—"

"Caroline."

"Okay, so the point is, I know it was important to you and now here you are all moody and broody and I really want to know what happened."

He just looked sad now which made her curiosity grow.

"I don't want to talk about it."

She growled in frustration. God, he could be such a baby sometimes!

"Fine, whatever, just stay here sulking alone," she turned to leave stomping her foot.

She could be a baby too, mister!

He sighed sadly making her stop near the door and turn around again.

He was giving her the lost puppy look. Oh, shit.

She lifted an eyebrow. "Klaus, what happened tonight?"

Silence.

"Klaus," she repeated in harder tone this time. "Tell me what happened."

"Fine," he spoke defeated. "You know how Stefan and I used to be friends in the 20s, right?"

"I know how you and _ripper_ Stefan were friends in the 20s."

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah and you know how I wanted to rekindle that friendship back in—"

"How you so pathetically chased after him begging to be his friend again?" She asked amusedly. "Yeah, I remember."

He glared at her and she raised her hands in surrender. "Fine, I'll stop. Tell me."

"Well, when he asked if I wanted to have drinks I thought that maybe he wanted to rekindle things too, but all he wanted was to talk about how I don't deserve you and that if I ever hurt you he'd find a way to make my life miserable," he pouted. "Then he left and I stayed at the bar drinking until now."

Caroline was stunned and didn't really know what to say to him. Of course Stefan would play the protective best friend slash big brother part and defend her. He was _her_ friend, not Klaus's, as much as the hybrid wishes him to be. Honestly, she kind of feel bad for the (lost puppy) man in front of her, he really wanted Stefan's friendship. But really, what did he expect? That Stefan would forget all the awful things he's done to him and just be buddies with Klaus again? He should know by now that that's not how things work. Didn't he learn that with her?

Caroline sighed and was about to voice him this when a new thought crossed her mind.

"Wait…" she frowned. "All this time when you were sulking and I thought you were jealous of Stefan… I was wrong, wasn't I? It wasn't Stefan you were jealous of. You were jealous of me!" She pointed an accusatory finger at him.

He was silent but his face said it all, he looked like a deer caught by the flash light.

Suddenly a burst of laughter passed her lips.

"It's not funny," he pouted.

"I know, I know," she tried to stifle her laugh, but found out she couldn't.

"Then stop laughing!"

"I'm sorry, I can't," she couldn't help it, her a thousand years old boyfriend jealous of her because he lacked social skills and common sense. "This is too damn good."

"Caroline," he warned.

"Okay, I'll stop laughing." And so stop laughing she did. "Come, let's go back to bed. We can talk about your obsession with Stefan tomorrow when we're both rested."

She took him by the hand and started to lead him to the bedroom.

"I'm not obsessed with Stefan."

"If you say so."


	2. Ok, Cupids

**Ok, Cupids**

**Promp: Klaus and Caroline sign Stefan into an online dating site.**

"Age?"

"Should we be honest?"

"Forever seventeen."

"Now, love, I don't think that's very attractive."

Caroline stopped typing to cut him a glare, "excuse me?"

The smirk immediately disappeared from him face.

"Except for you, love, forever seventeen is very attractive on you," he said with a charming smile.

Throwing him another annoyed glance, Caroline went back to the questionnaire, "marital Status?"

"Forever pining after doe-eyed doppelgangers that like to bang my brother," Klaus answers amusedly.

Groaning Caroline turns to him, "can you take this seriously, please?"

"Sweetheart, there's nothing serious on filling an online dating profile for a one hundred year old vampire," he answered matter-of-factly, which only made Caroline more annoyed.

"Klaus, the sooner we get Stefan a date, the sooner we'll have some time to ourselves."

"We're having time to ourselves right now!"

"_Because_, I guilt tripped Stefan into getting me more blood bags."

"You sent the Ripper to the hospital?" He asked her with a mix of incredulity and amusement.

"I was desperate!" Caroline defends.

And she really was, Stefan had been "visiting" them for over three months and, at first, she and Klaus—although he'd never admit—were ecstatic, they both loved Stefan and missed him and couldn't wait to have some company that wasn't a part of Klaus's annoying family—

—because, good God, those people are a pain in the ass!

So yes, at first Stefan's visit had been fun, they caught up, they went out, and he even went shopping with her a couple of times. But then, things started escalating, what was supposed to be a four weeks visit became two months and the two months soon became three and her lovely best friend became a needy burden.

He was _always_ there, either after her or Klaus or both, wherever they went. The only thing missing was for him to climb in bed with them and ask to sleep in the middle and she didn't doubt that he might come to that point if they don't find something for him to distract himself with and s_oon_, because she misses spending time with _her_ hybrid, _alone_.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to the man sitting in bed beside her.

"Look, Stefan has been really lonely lately, he's so sad and he's my best friend! I really want to help him, so please, help me help him," she gives him her best puppy eyes that always get her what she wants.

Sighing, Klaus motions for her to continue.

"Sexual orientation? Straight."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yeah, why?" She turns to him with a questioning look.

"Nothing," he answers innocently with a shrug.

Caroline's brows furrowed, "do you know something I don't?"

"I know many things you don't," he teased.

She narrowed her eyes at him, but when he didn't offer an explanation and kept smiling at her, she let it go. She had more important things to worry about now than Klaus cryptic words. He was full of them after all.

"Let's just finish this."

Thirty minutes, fifty three snarky comments, eighty one eye rolls and uncountable scoffs later they were done with Stefan's online dating profile.

"Broody Stefan, 17 in soul; currently living in New Orleans, sharing a house with my super cool BFF and her anti-social boyfriend; I'm rich, funny—," she ignores the snort, "—and confident; I don't have a job because I don't need one; on a typical Friday night I am: out with my bestie; the most private thing I am willing to admit: I like to write down my memories on journals; you should message me if you are: interested in romance," she finishes with a satisfied clap. "It's done, we did well! Actually _I_ did well, _you_ didn't help at all."

"I'm sorry if I don't agree with your methods. I much rather do it the old fashion way," he said taking a sip from his bourbon glass—when the hell did he get that?

Shaking her head slightly Caroline glares at him, "we've talked about this, this way is faster and easier to keep it a secret," she said.

Klaus rolls his eyes in her direction, she knows he got it; they've had this conversation plenty of times before.

"So what now?" he asks.

"Now, we find someone to date Stefan."

"And how do we do that?"

"We check out girls' profiles and see if they'd be a good match. When we find one we like, we message her," she explains with a smile.

He frowns, "How exactly do you know so much about online dating?"

"I watch TV. Now, let's get to work."

With a last defeated sigh, Klaus turns back to look at the laptop screen with his girlfriend. This is going to be a long night…


	3. That Pesky Phone

**That Pesky Phone**

**Prompt: Caroline and Stefan shopping while Klaus is texting her non-stop about pervy things.**

Stefan Salvatore was bored, so bored. He couldn't believe he had let Caroline drag him into this, to a shopping trip.

He _hated_ shopping.

And he especially hated shopping with women—they became monsters when they were surrounded by clothes, shoes and bags. It was even worst when they actually had money to buy anything they wanted. And Caroline did, oh how she did!

It's been two hours since they entered the mall and she had already bought half of two stores and was on her way to buy half of another one. Worst part is: _he_was the one who had to carry all those bags, because she was, quote too busy to carry on her own and he was supposed to be, quote a gentleman.

He let out a sigh when she stopped in front a store window and, seemingly liking what she saw inside, dragged him into the store with her.

He was watching her scroll through a clothes rack when they heard her phone ringing inside her purse. Caroline paused and reached to retrieve it, typing a quick message to whoever had interrupted her fun. She returned to her scrolling and not a minute later her phone was ringing again. She rolled her eyes and grabbed the device. This time she gasped when reading the message's content before typing another answer and quickly getting rid of the pesky phone.

"What was that?" he asked her curiously.

She looked at him, embarrassed—

—Wait, Caroline Forbes? Embarrassed?

"Just Klaus," she answered simply, not giving him anymore details and averting her eyes.

Huh, suspicious.

Maybe Klaus is being his usual paranoid self and annoying Caroline with assumptions about their relationship. He wouldn't be surprised if that was the case, Klaus was Klaus and as much as he had grown by being with Caroline, he wouldn't let go of one thousand years of insecurities and personality traits.

He could only laugh at his former friend's suspicion though. The idea of him and Caroline being more than friends was ridiculous, she was like a little sister to him. Plus, he would never be stupid enough to try to steal the Big Bad Hybrid's girlfriend. He still had a sense of self preservation.

By now his friend had already moved to another rack. She was scrolling distractedly now, not paying much attention to the clothes when her phone rang for the third time in less than five minutes. He saw the red creep up her cheeks while reading the text that she seemingly decided to ignore.

Clearing her throat she said without looking him in the eye, "It's time for shoes," and started walking away, hitting a clothes rack on the way out.

He wondered what was on those texts that had made Caroline so flustered…

As they walked towards the shoe store, her phone didn't stop ringing and she clutched her purse's strap every time it did to fight the temptation to look at messages, growing more and more anxious every time. It would be an amusing sight for anyone, but not to Stefan Salvatore whose eyebrows were so furrowed that they seemed to have merged into one.

Things did not get better once they finally reached the store. Caroline's phone wouldn't stop ringing and Caroline herself was so antsy that she kept dropping shoes, confusing sizes and stuttering her orders to the attendant. No need to say that Stefan was worried.

When she tripped on the pile of shoes that has formed on the floor and fell with her ass back on the chair, he said enough! He would get answers for her weird behavior and he would get them right now.

Turning to her he asked, "Caroline, what the hell is going on?"

She did not look at him when she answered nervously, "w-what do you mean?"

"I mean that you've been acting weird since you got that message from Klaus."

"I'm not acting weird!" she said with a too loud voice and a creepy smile that couldn't fool anyone.

Stefan was not amused by her antics.

"Yes, you are," he said seriously, "You're all flustered and clumsy and you keep tripping on your own words."

"It's nothing, I promise," she said with a calmer tone, putting a hand on his arm to reassure him that everything was okay.

And he believed her… until the phone rang again with yet another message and Caroline became redder than a tomato after reading it.

"W-we… um… we should go… um… maybe eat something…" she stuttered, getting up from the chair and grabbing her purse, the shoes that she did not buy and that were clearly too big for her still on her feet.

But he had had enough. If she wouldn't tell him what those messages were about and why they were making her so uncomfortable, he would figure out for himself.

Reaching out he pulled her back to the chair and grabbed her purse, quickly finding her phone. He could hear her gasp and her pleas not to read the messages, saying something about how he "doesn't want to read that," but he paid her no mind.

He found her inbox: 20 new messages from Klaus, and began reading.

"From Klaus: Love, I can't wait for you to get home so we can—," he stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening as he read Klaus's next words, shooting his friend an incredulous look.

She raised her eyebrows at him, "I hate to say I warned you, but I did."

His eyes went back to the phone and he continued to scroll through the messages, each one dirtier than the last.

When he finally had enough, he gave the phone back to his friends, unable to look her in the eyes.

"He… um… has some very… um… _bold_ ideas of how flexible you can be."

"Well, I _was_ a cheerleader," she said matter-of-factly.

Stefan grimaced and started walking away without sparing her a glance.

"Wait, where are you going? Stefan!" she called.

"I'm going to drink until the image of how _flexible_ you can be with Klaus is out of my brain."

This might take the entire liquor supply of the city.


	4. We Won't Say Our Goodbyes

**We Won't Say Our Goodbyes**

_You know it's better that way_

She has always hated goodbyes, has never been good at them, but she was particularly bad at saying goodbye to _him_. Even in the first time they had to say goodbye, back at her 20s themed decade dance that he had crashed. It was the most uncomfortable dance of her entire life – no, not because she was dancing in the arms of their enemy, she had already done that and it was – dare she say it – _pleasant._ No, it was because her boyfriend had been there, watching their every move like a hawk and, even though she _hates_ to admit it, Klaus' words had hit too close to home, "Small town boy, small town life, it won't be enough for you."

He was right; she had always known that he was right. Caroline has always felt like she was meant for bigger and better things than tiny Mystic Falls. Don't get her wrong, she loves her town; it's her _home_, after all. But she has never wanted to spend her whole life stuck in it, the urge to travel and know new places has always been a part of her life, but she's never really pushed for it, never actually considered that leaving it was a real option for her. Content with simply settling, getting married, starting a family, being the organizer of every big event in town, maybe on day becoming the mayor – what? Caroline Forbes aims high even when she's aiming low – and after the supernatural drama hit Mystic Falls and she started to lose the people she holds dear, she started to cling to her normal life as much as possible.

It wasn't until Klaus walked inside her room that night to feed her his blood and give her an entire speech about the wonders of the world that that dream of exploring it had returned to her and she started considering the possibility that maybe, just maybe, she _could_ do bigger and better things.

At that moment in time, Klaus represented to her the possibilities of a more exciting life and she didn't want to say goodbye to that just yet, no matter how much she hated him and how much she wanted to rub it in his face that he was wrong, she simply couldn't.

So she didn't say goodbye that day.

The second time she didn't say goodbye to him was after her graduation and she didn't hate him anymore. No, she hated _herself _for not hating him and for wanting him to be there that day, for reaching out to him with that invitation, for _missing_ him when he was gone, for wishing, even if just for a moment, that he had kissed her in the lips instead of in the cheek, for feeling that anticipation when he leaned closer to her, for the butterflies in her belly when he told her he intended to her last love and she hated herself for allowing him to take her out for a date.

Her friends had all taken off and her mother had been called in the station right after the ceremony, she wasn't surprised in the slightest, she knew the veil dropping had caused all kinds of trouble in the town and the sheriff would have to cover them up. It didn't lessen the disappointment that she felt when learning that she wouldn't be spending this night with her mom though. But she didn't want to be alone tonight, she wanted to celebrate the end of a chapter in her life and she wanted to share it with someone. So when Klaus asked if he could take her out for a drink she didn't hesitate before saying yes.

He took her to his mansion and they drank a fancy bottle of champagne in one of the benches of his ridiculously big garden. It reminds her of that date they had, not long ago on another ridiculously big garden in another ridiculously large mansion that belongs to another hybrid. With that thought, the guilt hits her in such intensity that it makes her dizzy. Tyler is hiding God knows where, fearing for his life and instead of calling him the second Klaus granted him his freedom she decided to drink and laugh and enjoy herself in his company. What was _wrong_ with her?

That was what made her jump out of the bench and turn to Klaus with a frown. He was looking at her with concern is his eyes and her heart clenched at the thought that she was about to disappoint him after he came so far just to see her. Dammit, her heart was such a messy thing these days.

"It's late, I have to go," she said, offering him an apologetic smile.

Disappointment crossed his face, as she expected, but he soon covered it up with a smile. He stood up and gathered the glasses and the empty bottle before walking to her.

"As you wish, love. Would you allow me to drive you home?"

She nodded with a smile.

The drive back to her house was silent and quick - too quick. Klaus didn't say anything to her while she exited the car, he was probably expecting her to, but she couldn't. At that moment in time Klaus represented her guilt, but he also represented the world outside, especially now that he moved to a more exciting city, he represented devotion – the guy _did _came back just for her after all – and he also represented the future–

–no, _no_, she's not thinking about spending her future with him. No way!

However, she _is_ thinking about listening to his advice and how could she say goodbye to that?

She left the car and went back to her house without a word. Always the gentleman, Klaus waited for her to get inside to drive away, she watched his car from the window until it was out of sight.

The third time she didn't say goodbye to him was in the woods after hours of exploring each other's bodies. He caught her by surprise that day; she wasn't expecting to see him so soon after graduation and his grand promise, as she heard he was pretty busy in New Orleans.

What also caught her by surprise was his request, "As soon as we're done here, I'm going to walk away and I'm never coming back. [...] I will be gone and you will be free. I just... want you to be honest with me." She was _not_ expecting that. She wasn't ready for that.

She pondered for a moment, maybe it was the resignation in his tone, maybe it was the pleading eyes, maybe it was the fact that she knew that even if she denied him he would go back to New Orleans anyway. _Or_ maybe it was all of those things combined that made her decide to be honest. But Caroline could never quite put into words how she felt about him; it was all too confusing for her and she's not about to spend an hour explaining to Klaus how she feels, so she opted for a kiss. And oh, what a mistake that was...

His lips were just as soft as she imagined and he was such a great kisser, she could practically hear the fireworks in her head as she pressed her lips harder against his and brought her hands to his hair to keep him place. The smile he gave her had heart melting and she couldn't _not_ smile back. Apparently, that was all the permission Klaus needed to push her against a tree and kiss her harder and that's when Caroline Forbes, control freak extraordinaire, lost control. In the back of her head, she knew the consequences of her actions, but as Klaus ripped her shirt to shreds and kissed her, she didn't care and soon they were both naked and all she could think about was how good he felt against her.

He had been the best lover she's ever had and she was not surprised, he _did_ have gazilion years of practice. When the two of them finally exhausted themselves, they just laid in the forest floor, Caroline resting her head on Klaus's chest, playing with the lines of his tattoo and him playing with the curls of her hair. They were both silent, just enjoying these final moments together, committing it to memory. She had come to cherish and appreciate these little moments of quietness between them, it was a statement of how comfortable they had gotten with one another… it was quite frightening, to say the truth.

When the sun started to set and the day started to die, Caroline decided that it was time for her to return, she had been gone for hours, soon enough her friends might send a search party after her and she couldn't let them catch her in such a compromising position, now, could she?

Klaus laughed when she told him that.

"You weren't complaining thirty minutes ago, love." he said.

"Shut up."

As they got dressed she made a point to complain about the shirt he had ruined, to which he responded with a complaint about the pants _she_ had ruined, talked about how the hell was he supposed to go back to New Orleans with jeans that had a broken zipper and no button. She only smirked, he was rich, and he could very well stop by a store and buy himself a new pair of pants.

After they were both done, they came to stand in front of each other and it was the moment Caroline had been dreading since they ended their _activities_:the moment to say goodbye.

At this point in time, Klaus represented to her even more guilt – guilt that hadn't settled yet, because she didn't allow herself to think of the boy he had certainly hurt again – but now Klaus also represented freedom and pleasure and comfort and she isn't quite ready to let go just yet, even though she knows she has to as it was the entire point of today with him – to let go.

So Caroline brings her hand to caress his cheek again, to feel the stubble on his jaw one last time, to commit his features to memory. She gives him a light peck on the lips and pulls back with a small smile, which he doesn't return – too bad, because she wanted to see his dimples again. She opens her mouth to say it, that word (_goodbye_), but ends up shaking her head instead and walking away.

She knows that this was the last time he's reached out to her and she won't see him for a really long time. She's not stupid enough to believe that they will never cross paths again. They are immortals, after all, and the world is small enough that they will eventually end up in the same place at the same time, one day in the future. Be it in a year or a century, she will see him again and she can only hope that she will be strong enough to say goodbye then... or maybe she won't have to.

(But she's definitely _not_ considering that possibility. Nope.)


	5. When I Look Into Your Eyes

**When I Look Into Your Eyes**

**(you're not even there)**

**Prompt: Caroline doesn't recognize the man she married anymore. Angst. AU/AH. **

The apartment was silent; all she could hear were the sounds of the outside world, her own breathing and occasionally the sound of the wine she twirled in her glass. This situation wasn't new to her, she's left alone with her thoughts more often than not these days and, sadly, she used to it, and used to the loneliness she never thought she would feel. She's always been a girl of many friends, when she was younger she was almost never alone, not even when her mother neglected her in the name of her job.

Oh, being neglected, another feeling she became a little too used to, all of the most important people of her life neglected her; her father who only called once a week and visited once every two months, her mother who worked 24/7 and now her husband whose job also takes so much time that he can't even bother to show up for their anniversary dinner anymore – or any other dinner actually.

She let out a bitter laugh and finished her wine. Moving to the bottle, she noticed it was empty. Another bottle of wine she finished alone, that seems to be happening a lot lately… maybe she's becoming an alcoholic.

Resting her elbows on her knees, she dropped her head on her hands, she wanted to cry at the mess her life had become, it's a quarter to one in the morning and she's on a strange city with no friends, no family, sitting all alone inside her huge apartment's living room waiting for a man she felt like she barely knew anymore. She was miserable, plain and simple. And that's why she made the most difficult decision of her life a couple of hours ago – she was leaving.

Her sole piece of luggage was resting next to the foot of her couch; there was no point in taking too much with her, so she decided to only pack the essentials – some clothes, a couple pairs of shoes, her documents and a little wooden box where she kept mementos of her life and the people she loved.

She heard the elevator door open and looked up, seconds later her husband walked inside the living room, he looked tired, his hair was messy and he was already undoing his tie, he frowned when he saw her sitting on the couch, dressed in a pair of jeans, a sweater and ballerina flats, hair a mess and an empty bottle of red wine resting on the coffee table.

"Caroline, love—," he started, but stopped when he noticed the luggage. His frown deepened and he looked at her questionably. "Are you going somewhere? Did something happen? You look upset."

She didn't bother looking at him; instead she fixed her look on the wall in front of her.

"Do you know what time is it?" she asked in a monotone voice.

He kept frowning and looked at his watch.

"12: 47 why?"

"Do you have any idea what day was yesterday?"

He shook his head, utterly confused.

"I—," he began but she cut him off, raising her voice.

"It was our wedding anniversary, Klaus!"

His eyes widened as realization hit him and tears started pooling on her eyes.

"Five years of marriage and you forgot!" a broken sob left her then and she dropped her head on her hands again.

Klaus was cursing mentally, how could he forget something so important? He rubbed his hands down his face.

"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry," he said while moving to sit next to her on the couch and putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. "What can I do to make it up to you? What do you want, jewelry, shoes, clothes, a new car maybe?"

She could not believe what he was saying, he didn't know her at all anymore. She's not surprised, what with the amount of time he spends working instead of being home with her. It doesn't mean it doesn't hurt to hear him trying to buy her, trying to buy her forgiveness. She had made very clear to him back when he started courting her that she couldn't – wouldn't – be bought.

Quickly her sadness was replaced with anger and she slapped his hand away.

"Seriously, Klaus, you are trying to buy me? Who the hell do you think I am?"

He looked caught off guard by her outburst, which only infuriated her more. She stood up from the couch and started pacing around the living room.

"Caroline –,"

"I've told you before, you can't buy me! I'm not a whore! I don't want jewelry or fancy clothes or a new fancy car, I don't want three hundred pairs of shoes or two hundred bags, I don't want an apartment that's too big for only two people and I certainly don'twant a private jet!"

Klaus had schooled his features into a cold mask of indifference, a mask she was too familiar with, it was already there when they met and it will continue to be there long after she's gone. But after eight years of being with him, of loving him and being loved by him, she knew Klaus better than anyone, she knew how to read past the mask, and what she saw deep in his eyes was fear.

It was enough to melt a little of the anger she felt and replace it back with sadness.

"We've talked about this only a few months ago," she started in a softer voice, "all I want is for my husband to pay attention to me, I want you to have breakfast with me instead of leaving in a hurry every morning, I want you to come home to dinner every night, I want to go out on dates, just the two of us, I want you to remember out anniversary, to stop putting your job before me, before us!"

"I'm trying, Caroline! I'm trying!"

"No, Klaus, you tried, for a few weeks and then you went back to working 24/7!"

He looked annoyed now, like he always did when she criticized the amount of time he spent working.

"The reason I work so hard is to maintain all the luxury we have!" he said in harsh tone while gesturing to the things around them.

She laughed bitterly – this was like talking to a brick wall.

"See, you don't even listen to me!" her voice was loud and exasperated. "I just told you I don't care about that stuff! I was fine with the simpler things, when it was just you and me in that small apartment, when we went out on vacation together once a year, when you took me on dates every weekend, when we still knew each other!"

Now he got up from the couch too, she could see he was angry.

"So what do you want me to do then?" he started. "Leave my firm, my work of a lifetime just so I can spend every minute of every day with you? Is that what you want, Caroline?" he said the last part as if mocking her.

Her tears had blurred her vision now and she let out a sob while shaking her head.

"No, it's not."

"Then what. The. Hell. Do. You. Want?" he asked again through gritted teeth.

As she looked at him she wondered, not for the first time, when did he become so cruel, so cold hearted and where was the bad tempered but sweet guy she fell for? Maybe he had always been that way deep down and she was too blind to notice? No, he changed, as soon as his firm started gaining clients and making tons of money every month. Klaus, her Klaus was unrecognizable at this point, he had been replaced by a copy of the man he hated most in the world – his father.

Caroline knew then that she really didn't have another option but to leave, leave before it was too late and she too became unrecognizable. She couldn't let him drag her down, not anymore.

Her marriage was over.

She took a deep breath to calm herself before shaking her head slowly and giving him a sad smile.

"I want nothing. Not from you, not anymore."

He looked at her in confusion.

"Do you see that?" she asked, pointing to the luggage still resting next to couch. "I'm leaving you."

That's when his mask broke and she could see the emotions crossing his face – realization, fear, hurt, desperation – she could practically hear his heart breaking into a million pieces inside his chest, it made her own broken heart clench.

"No, no, no, you can't do that," he reached both of his hands to hold her face, shaking his head frantically. "You can't do that, Caroline. I can fix this, I can drop everything and fix this. Just don't go, please."

She shook her head too, "you said that months ago when I fist told you that I was unhappy," tears were streaming down her face and she had to force her voice out. "You said you were going to fix it back then and here we are now, even worse than before."

"Just give me another chance, please," he shook her gently, desperate to try and change her mind.

And for half a second she considered it – giving him another chance. But this time her mind won the battle against her heart, logic won against emotion and she forced herself to stop crying, to reach for his hands and gently put them back by his side, to pick up her luggage and leave the room without sparing her husband even a single look.

As she entered the elevator she could hear something being thrown at the wall and shattering – probably one of her expansive Chinese vases. It was the perfect background music for the moment though – it matched perfectly with the sound her heart (and Klaus') was making.


	6. Waiting Room

**Waiting Room**

**Prompt: ****my dog won't stop barking at your cat in the waiting room at the vets au**

She was sitting on the waiting room of the vet's clinic, reading a gossip magazine, her cat inside the cage at her foot and hissing at the pit bull that has been barking at her for the past ten minutes. Needless to say, it was driving her mad.

The dog's owner was a curly haired blond man wearing dark jeans, a black Henley and necklaces. Caroline had to admit that he was hot, he had full lips that were unbelievably pink and his Henley was so fit she could see the outline of his muscles. He had caught her eyes as soon as he entered the room and sat down and for the first minute after his arrival she was rooting for him to look up from his book at her. When his dog started barking at her cat she thought that he might finally do it, but ten minutes have passed and the _asshole_ still haven't told his _stupid_ dog to shut the hell up!

Caroline's patience had ended by now so she abruptly put her magazine away and turned to the man.

"Oh my God, can you just tell that damn dog to _shut up_?!"

The man looked up from his magazine, finally, and – blue eyes! – looked at her with a questioning face.

"I'm sorry, what?" he asked, offering her a small smile – he has an accent! And dimples!

She narrowed her eyes at him, he had got be kidding her. She forced a smile and took a deep breath before speaking again.

"Your dog."

"What about him?" he asked challengingly.

He was _definitely_ playing with her.

"It's been barking for the past ten minutes and it's scaring my Marie," she answered him slowly.

"Your what?" he frowned.

She could feel her blood boiling now.

"My _cat_! Your dog has been barking for _ten_ minutes and it's scaring my cat!"

His frown deepened and he tilted his head to look inside the cage by her feet. An amused smile graces his features, making his cute – no, not cute – dimples even more apparent.

"You named you white blue eyed cat Marie? Not very original, are we, love?"

She scoffs. Jerk.

Crossing her arms she moves her upper body forwards.

"Tell your dog to _shut up_ or put a damn noseband band on it, for God's sake! What were you even thinking anyway, not putting a noseband on a pit bull? Those things are dangerous, it could escape and kill someone!" she was but yelling at the end of her rant.

His amused smile quickly disappeared from his face and his eyes hardened. She made him mad? Good.

"First of all, _he_ not _it_; second, a _dog_ not a _thing;_ third, pit bulls are very docile, caring, playful and loyal dogs, not monsters like _some_ people believe they are. It all depends on the creation," he said while using his fingers to number his points.

They stare at each other for a few minutes, the dog barking and the cat hissing in the background, before Caroline uncrosses her arms and sighs.

"Okay, can you, _please_, tell _him_ to stop barking?" she all but begged, the noise was unbearable and she was starting to get a headache.

He licked his lips – not that she was looking – and turned his head to look at his dog, pulling on the leash to get the animal's attention.

"Ripper, stop! Stop!" the barking was replaced by growling, "Ripper, lay!" Ripper obeyed and the man pat him in the head, "Good boy! Now distract yourself," he pulled a a chew toy out of his pocket and gave it to him.

"Thanks," Caroline said, humming in appreciation at the silence. Oh, how she had missed it!

The infuriating man offered her small smile before looking back at the dog who was now entertained by the toy. She arched an eyebrow at him.

"Rippah?" she asked, mocking his accent.

He looked back her with a frown.

"Sounds very docile," she continued, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

He arched an eyebrow back at her, the amused smile back to his lips.

"Don't judge a dog by his name, sweetheart."

"I'm not. I'm judging his owner," she quipped with a clip of her tongue.

He smirked. She smirked back.

They stared at each other for a while, Caroline taking this opportunity to ogle him some more, he really was beautiful man and dripped with charm. Too bad he was so unpleasant. He rested his elbows on his knees and moved his upper body forwards, keeping eye contact, he narrowed his eyes at her before breaking the silence.

"What's your name?" he asked in a deeper tone of voice than before.

She was caught by surprise at his question.

"Seriously?"

He nodded.

"Yes, I'm serious. What's your name?"

She narrowed her eyes before answering carefully.

"Caroline."

"Caroline," he repeated slowly, "I'm Klaus."

"Klaus," she did the same thing as he. Klaus. The name was fitting, she thought.

"So, um, what do you say, can I buy you a cup of coffee once we're both done here?" he asked with what she guessed was his most charming smile.

Her jaw dropped and her eyebrows shot to her hairline. He was asking her out?

"Seriously?" oops, she wasn't supposed to have said that out loud. Mental facepalm!

He laughed at her reaction and she cringed in embarrassment.

"I'm very serious," he said after a couple of seconds with a smile, "I fancy you, do you want to grab some coffee?"

Fancy you? What kind of man says that? She laughed and shaked her head in amusement.

"Yes, I do," she said with a smile before her eyes widened in realization, "Oh! But I don't think we can get inside a coffee shop with a dog _and_ a cat," she shot him an apologetic look.

A look of realization crossed his face before he nodded.

"Okay, then you give me your number and I call you."

She smiled wide.

"Okay then."


	7. Secret Santa

**Secret Santa**

Klaus Mikaelson. Klaus. Freaking. Mikaelson. Of all people in her group of friends she had to be _Klaus Mikaelson_'s Secret Santa. The _one_ person she couldn't stand. That's just her bloody – bloody? Spending too much time around British people, are we? – luck.

She sighed and forced a smile to her best friend, Rebekah, who was holding the bag full of written names in front of her. Maybe it wasn't too late to say she got herself and change it? But as she opened her mouth to say something, Damon (the other person she couldn't stand – what? She was just being dramatic earlier!) grabbed the bag from Rebekah's hand and they started their usual bitter bickering.

Well, crap.

One week later and three days away from the deadline, Caroline still haven't found the perfect gift. Yes, perfect, it's not because she hates him – which she doe

s, very much so – that she'll give a shitty gift. Giving shitty gifts is just simply not in her nature, it goes against everything she is. So yeah, she's still out in town looking for the perfect gift to give _Klaus Mikaelson_ aka the biggest asshole in town. After Damon. No, wait, it's definitely a tie.

She wants to scream, she knows _nothing_ about him besides the fact that likes to draw and treat people like they are all inferior to him. It's kind of ridiculous how she's known him for over ten years and he's basically a stranger to her. But again, that's not _her_ fault, she did try to be nice when they moved to town, but you know, _asshole_.

What can she give the guy anyway? He's filthy rich! He can have anything any time he wants. So what can Caroline Forbes, an intern on a TV station, give him? She has no idea, she never felt this lost looking for a gift before, gifts are usually her specialty. Ugh, ugh, ugh. Why couldn't she have gotten Rebekah instead? Or Stefan! She would give anything to get Stefan, she's been crushing on him since forever and he's finally single – a fact she feels slightly bad celebrating as his ex-girlfriend is one of her closest friends.

She shakes her head off these thoughts. No time for this drama today, Caroline, you're a woman on a mi– she stops to look at a store window. Interesting. Very, very interesting.

She goes inside.

Three days, lots of wrapping paper and many cups of eggnog later and it's time for the gift exchange! And Caroline feels dizzy – is it just her or is the room slightly spinning? And why is it taking _so_ long for her Secret Santa to reveal him or herself? Damon has just given Bonnie her gift and Bonnie was the one who started, which means the circle is closed. Did Rebekah forget to put her name on the bag?

"What about me?" she asked, a little louder than what was necessary. "Did you forget me, Bekah? How could you? I'm you _bestest _best friend in the entire Universe! How dare you f–" Rebekah, who was sitting right next to Caroline, cuts her off by putting a ball of wrapping paper in her mouth – gross.

"I didn't forget you, you over dramatic little twit!" she said, in her typically annoyed tone of voice. Rebekah always does sounds like she's one hundred percent done with everyone. "Nik hasn't given his gift yet, which means he has you and you probably have him too."

Oh.

"You drank way too much eggnog, it's making you slower than usual," her best friend – she really should reconsider that title – continued.

Caroline then spit the ball of wrapping paper, that was still on her mouth, on Rebekah's lap, which earned her a death glare from the girl and would probably have earned her a slap too if her brother hadn't interrupted.

God, she's never been happier to hear his voice. His very sexy voice.

Wait... What?

"Ladies," he started, in a patronizing tone. "Are you done?"

She shook her head slightly.

"Yes," is what she says before standing up from her spot on the couch and standing in front of him. "Right, let's do this."

Maybe Bekah was right and she did drink too much eggnog, but he looked really _fine_ tonight. His was wearing a red sweater that contrasted with his pale skin, bringing out his blue eyes and that was oh so tight, she could see the outline of his chest. His hands were behind his back, probably holding her gift and he looked a little... Nervous? No, it can't be, Klaus Mikaelson doesn't do nervous, specially not in front of her.

As he was about to speak, she held up her hand.

"I'll go first," she said while reaching back to get his gift. Grabbing the small package, she holds it up in front of his face. "Here, merry Christmas."

Klaus grabs the gift with one hand and hands her the larger package he had been hiding with the other. "Merry Christmas, Caroline."

They both just stare at each other for a few seconds.

"Aren't you going to open it?" he asked.

"After you, I gave it first."

"Okay then."

He unwraps his gift slowly, Caroline watching his every movement. He smiles when he sees the little necklace inside.

"Do you like it?"

"Yes, I think it suits me," he gives her a small smile and a nod of appreciation before she moves to open the package in her hands.

He observes her just as she observed him and if she didn't know better, she would say he looked a little bit more nervous each time she looked up.

Finally, she got rid of all the wrapping paper and reached a cardboard box. Opening it, Caroline was speechless with what she found inside.

"I was walking through a street the other day," she could hear Klaus saying. "And passed in front of this store, which had that teddy bear and I immediately remembered–"

"My favorite bear that I lost in that camping trip with your family when I was ten," she completed the sentence. He remembered! And not only that, he had gotten her an exact replica of... "Mister Puffy!" she exclaimed while her vision blurred with tears.

"Oh, so _that's _why you wanted to switch papers with me!" Stefan yelled from his spot on a chair – he drank too much eggnog too.

Klaus glared at his friend and was about to jump him when suddenly he felt something – or better yet, some_one_ – throwing her arms around his neck and squeezing him tight. It was Caroline, it was Caroline Forbes hugging him for the first time.

And it definitely wouldn't be the last.

"Thank you," she whispered. Who knew Klaus Mikaelson could be such a sensitive guy?


End file.
